


white dwarf

by alaudarum



Category: Inazuma Eleven, Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-02
Updated: 2018-06-02
Packaged: 2019-05-17 03:02:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14823986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alaudarum/pseuds/alaudarum
Summary: How peculiar, she thought to herself, that a boy could have such great control over the living from beyond the grave.In which Kira Hiroto is dead, Reina is the one everyone goes to when they need a hand, and Tatsuya's hair was not always that shade of bright red.





	white dwarf

**Author's Note:**

  * For [salts](https://archiveofourown.org/users/salts/gifts), [toska](https://archiveofourown.org/users/toska/gifts).



> [ATTEMPTS TO BREATHE LIFE INTO THE I11 FANFIC TAG]
> 
> Semi-AU where Kira Hiroto is still dead, but the Aliea Meteorite shenanigans never occurred (does that... make this Ares no Tenbin??? but Kira Hiroto is dead in this??? we may never know). Reina and "Tatsuya" are Ares-verse. Somewhat based off the fact that I didn't recognize Hiroto in the Ares no Tenbin opening when I first saw him because the colors were stylized to something darker and made his hair look closer to black. I know I just squashed original Inazuma with Ares no Tenbin together but sometimes you just gotta write your own guilty pleasure works ok
> 
> Title taken from the term white dwarf, which is a star that has cooled and is in the process of dying peacefully :)

Reina blinked as Hiroto finished elaborating his request. “You… want me to help you with _what_?”

Nonetheless, Hiroto remained steadfast. “Why? It shouldn’t be that difficult, right? I know you dye your hair on your own, so I thought I should ask you for help.”

Reina narrowed her eyes. That wasn’t the point, and she knew Hiroto well enough to catch onto him deflecting from the root of the matter. If Hiroto intended to stand his ground, then it was only fair that she return the sentiment.

“Hiroto, I know what you’re trying to do,” she said (in fact, she almost always did). “It’s for Father, isn’t it?”

Hiroto wasn’t the only one from Sunshine Garden who had seen photos of _him_.

How peculiar, she thought to herself, that a boy could have such great control over the living from beyond the grave.

Her eyes met Hiroto’s, taking on a stern expression. Though Hiroto met her gaze with a determined expression, he was the first to avert his eyes. Reina did not need to ask Hiroto why he’d suddenly put on a somber expression; she already knew.

“Father still keeps photos of him, so I thought… It shouldn’t be too difficult to find a similar shade as his -- ”

That was enough. She didn’t want to hear anymore of it.

“Reina, why are you…?”

Her grip on Hiroto’s arms tightened ever so slightly. Perhaps, if she shook him hard enough, he would return to his senses. Perhaps, if she shook him hard enough, he would go back to being the “Tatsuya” from the past.

But that was then, and this was now. Hiroto Kira was gone, and with him, “Tatsuya” had disappeared as well.

“Reina --”

“I know. I know, Hiroto.” She chooses to face the floor so he cannot see her pained expression. She thinks to herself, _I know, I know it’s because you love him._

She thinks to herself, _I know, I know how you feel because I love him too._

Only when she knows she can look him in the eye with a smile does she finally lift her head. Reina sighs, pressing an index and middle finger against her forehead. “Well, we should start soon then. Your hair is dark and will take time to lighten. Do you still have that old shirt from Sunshine Garden’s last field day? You’ll need that because --”

She pauses when she feels Hiroto squeeze her arm, and only then does Reina realize she hasn’t let go of Hiroto’s arms.

Reina crosses her arms over her chest with a sigh, only arching a brow after glancing back at the boy living in the dead’s shadows.

The nerve of him, asking her to help him erase more of himself.

“Why are you smiling?”

Hiroto’s eyes widen, as though Reina had caught him sneaking away with a bag of cookies she’d brought to share with the rest of the children. He shakes his head with a sheepish smile. “No, it’s nothing. Thank you for understanding."

Reina worries her lower lip between her teeth. She understands, but at the expense of losing even more of the “Tatsuya” that was left within him? That, she could not understand.

He takes his leave without another word.

She is left alone with her thoughts. They swirl about, a tempestuous whirlwind inside her head.

_You’re lucky, Hiroto, that I know how stubborn you can be._


End file.
